Experiences with Prescription & Over-the-Counter Drugs

Emma started drinking as a teenager and by her mid-twenties she says she had a ‘serious problem’ with alcohol.

From his late teens into his twenties, Opal worked in industries where he says working hard and ‘drinking hard’ were ‘widely accepted’.

Phoenix grew up in a ‘violent home’ and describes his parents as ‘alcoholics’. In his mid-teens his parents separated and he left home and began drinking regularly.

Jack began taking heroin occasionally in his twenties and stopped in his early thirties after his doctor prescribed him morphine and Xanax® (alprazolam).

Kate first tried drugs in her mid-teens, occasionally smoking cannabis, and taking LSD and speed with friends.

Throughout much of his thirties, Sean took heroin, ice and cocaine, typically with friends, sometimes in relationships, and also alone. His drug consumption changed when he began a new relationship in his late thirties.

When she was in her early twenties, Annemarie experienced anxiety and panic attacks, and was prescribed benzodiazepines.